Any Interest in form a Buyers Group for FL campground? Winter/homebase in FL??

[funtimes70]

I have been a forum follower for many years. I actually started reading Bob's original site in its infancy and think I posted a few times there under an old email/screen name. I am 50 yrs old married empty nester. Wife and I owned a recreational equipment rental company for several years and have done the traveling lifestyle some during our off months. Very much into the smaller scale side of things preference wise when it comes to RVing as well as frugal/responsible budgeting which is why I was drawn to this community long ago. 

Curious if there is an interest from any individuals on here in forming a buying group of 12-15 persons to purchase a closed campground in Florida? It has 18 full hookup sites and is on municipal water/sewer which is a plus. Has a large community building and small bathhouse that need cosmetic upgrades.  I dont see it as truly ever being a thriving campground business as it is not a commercialized area and doesnt offer a great deal to vacationer types beyond fishing and kayaking and it is a very basic property. Plus there are other campgrounds in the area. But it could be a great home base for Vandwellers and/or fulltime RVers and would eliminate the concern of regulations and such as it is zoned a campground. The county is also RV friendly in general but again this is zoned a campground already so should be no issue for Vanners too especially if part of an owners group.

One idea is to maybe keep few spots open for availability as overnight rentals to cover owners' group taxes and overhead expenses and perhaps throw off small ROI. 

Would require approx $15k investment/buy in for each owner's share. Everything would of course be handled above board thru a licensed practicing FL attorney yet to be determined as again this post is simply to gauge if there would be a large enough group of seriously interested parties??

We can of course start the conversation here openly and/or I will gladly respond to PM's as well.

 

[rvwandering]

Welcome to the CRVL forums funtimes70! This has been discussed several times on the forum. I think every time people have concluded that it would be tying them down too much to one area plus there was worry about possible conflicts because of the number of people involved. It sounds like you found a good deal though. Hope you get some interest in the idea!

To help you learn the ins and outs of these forums, this "Tips, Tricks and Rules" post lists some helpful information to get you started.

Most of our rules boil down to two simple over-riding principles: 1) What you post should provide good information (like your introductory post), and 2) Any response to someone else's post should make them feel glad they are part of this forum community.

We look forward to hearing more from you.

 

[vgilbert]

I am having the same thoughts only with boondocking land. I hear land in AZ / NM is very cheap.

 

[Cammalu]

Where in Florida? Is it on a river? Got pics? What’s the taxes look like? Total campground cost?

 

[highdesertranger]

Hey Cammalu Your Pm box is full. Highdesertranger

 

[Cammalu]

Rut roh


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

 

[MG1912]

Is this a co-op with shareholders?

 

[funtimes70]

I am having the same thoughts only with boondocking land. I hear land in AZ / NM is very cheap.

Yes I have read some of your prior posts and like boondocking concept myself but ultimately long term I am afraid I see it too susceptible to local govt interference in regards to a group of campers using the land mainly water and sewer regulations. Guess thats why I like the already zoned campground and that its on city w/s.

 

[funtimes70]

Is this a co-op with shareholders?

Not yet formed but open to legal structure agreeable to all owners. Ideal structure should of course allow for [font=Tahoma, Verdana, Arial, sans-serif]individually [/font]owners to easily sell their share when desired of course and with an approval process of other owners such as basic credit/criminal approval.

 

[funtimes70]

Where in Florida?  Is it on a river?  Got pics?  What’s the taxes look like?  Total campground cost?

Nature coast near Suwannee River and the Gulf. Asking price $250k current tax value $180k. I will work on getting some pics up.

 

[funtimes70]

Pics attached

 

[Cammalu]

How close to the river? I’ve been looking for something on moving water. I keep running into
obstacles on what you can do which is basically I want to do nothing but park.

What about monthly upkeep fees

 

[funtimes70]

Yes sadly I think your obstacles are what we all are going to face more of moving forward. Regulations are never going to relax but only tighten. I have been looking for years at doing something like this and yes I would prefer the out of the way private parcel where I could do nothing but park and be to myself but unfortunately I just don't think that is realistic longterm the more I have looked into this. Every where we turn local govt is more concerned with the water/sewer issues and just wont let us park even on our own parcels without pulling permits to install septic and then most everywhere its required it be for a house and not an RV, even in RV friendly locales. They want RVs in the parks. And thats the reason this location is of interest as it would make the govt entities happy but could give us folks a place of our own without the high monthly rents. 

Campground is roughly a mile to the river and 2 miles to Ocean.  Monthly overhead would be dependent on number of shareholders/owners ie elect/water usage and such. Of course static costs like insurance/taxes would be less each the more it is shared. All in could be about $100 month per owner and that could possibly include mowing and internet. This of course is preliminary estimate - and based on if we did not rent out couple of the unused spaces nightly to offset our owners overhead.

 

[Cammalu]

Right. I found an acre on the beach that’s beautiful with white sand and clear water but I have to put at least a 1200 sf house on stilts on it. Then I can park my rv there.. not supposed to stay in it but who would know. I don’t want a damn house.. have dreamed up every way I could to slide around the rules... wonder if the house has to be finished inside? [emoji3]

 

[Ravella and X]

The idea doesn't sound a whole lot different than Escapees co-op parks. I don't know exactly how the Escapees fits into the structure, but I believe the local escapees chapters/clubs (clubs within a club?) own the parks as a club entity. The club members buy a lifetime lease of their lot. The way I understand it, the lifetime leases are non-transferrable and the clubs manage the parks via club structure with officers and committees and members as volunteers for much of the upkeep etc to help keep the annual upkeep fees low.

We have stayed at one co-op park for months as renters and people do come and go from their lots. The club rents out vacant lots (leasee is traveling). The club has general meetings and board meetings and rules and such as any joint/colaborative venture must have.

When we feel we need a home base, we will likely join a co-op and get on a waiting list for a lot. Seems like a good deal all in all. Until then, we have several co-ops to visit and get to know.

I can definitely see an RV park working as the OP has outlined it. It does seem to me that the path would be smoother and safer for interested folks by forming the club or other entity first, laying out the structure and bylaws etc., then going about the land purchase and all the exciting stuff that would follow. 1. A steering committee 2. A formal entity with bylaws and rules 3. A detailed plan and the funds to achieve it, and 4. A park.

 

[bullfrog]

Cammalu you would be better off to build out the house as an AirBnb and store your RV in the garage underneath. There are plenty of people managing other people’s property for AirBnb. My son and his partner do everything via internet, maintenance, cleaning, and scheduling. Most of the properties have been full with no less than 80% occupancy since the beginning of last year.

 

[abnorm]

""Campground is roughly a mile to the river and 2 miles to Ocean""....To the GULF....there's No Classic Beaches..... all Mangrove Hammock

I know the campground........I LOVE the Swanee and the surrounding springs.....That's Dixie County the poorest county in the State of Florida

The Ad says Municipal Sewer.....Watch for any gotchas from the Utilities re:upgrades......"Florida" can have some outrageous pricing on commercial properties concerning waste disposal

 

[bullfrog]

I just listened to “alligator in the house” and “gator on the lawn” think this thread is affecting me more than I realize! Lol!!!

 

[abnorm]

Singin Joy to the World..................Jeremiah was a BULLFROG

 

[Cammalu]

Most of the properties have been full with no less than 80% occupancy since the beginning of last year.

I don’t even know if this property will allow you to rent it out. I’m not sure of restrictions at this point. I need to do a lot more research.